A DOG owner had to resuscitate his pet with mouth-to-mouth CPR after an angry man punted the pooch across a Chester chip shop.

David Culley had tied Ted, a Lhasa Apso, outside the South View High-Fry off Sealand Road while he ordered his dinner on a summer’s evening.

But when his dog began barking he quickly found himself confronted by another customer, James McGill, who accused the mutt of terrorising his four-year-old son.

Chester Magistrates Court heard yesterday that McGill then kicked Ted in the ribs, sending him flying four to five feet across the shop.

Seeing his beloved pet splayed motionless in the middle of the floor, a distraught Mr Culley began frantically giving the animal CPR.

Luckily, Ted regained consciousness and was whisked off to the vet’s where he was nursed back to health over the space of an hour.

McGill, 40, of Ludlow Road, Blacon, admitted he had overreacted but said he had believed the dog – “a small vicious thing” – was going to attack his son.

The father-of-three pleaded guilty to one charge of criminal damage and was fined £400. He must also pay Mr Culley £118 in compensation.

The incident was originally classed as ‘causing unnecessary cruelty to an animal’ but it had to be reclassified after the six-month timeframe for the charge expired.

Rob Youds, prosecuting, told the court the altercation had occurred at around 5.40pm on September 8 last year.

McGill confronted Mr Culley in the doorway of the chip shop saying: “He [Ted] could have ripped my son’s face off or anything!”

He then ordered Mr Culley to move aside before kicking his dog barefoot in the right side.

“It launched him four to five feet where he landed in the middle of the shop floor,” Mr Youds told the court. “The dog was lying on the floor motionless with his eyes open and no signs of breathing.”

The defendant drove off while Mr Culley administered CPR on Ted before taking him to the vet’s on Brook Lane.

The vet found the animal was in shock and had suffered “blunt trauma” injuries that could have killed a smaller dog, Mr Youds said.

Howard Jones, defending, said McGill had parked over the road from the chip shop while his girlfriend and son went in to buy food. He only got out of the car when he heard barking and crying.

“The dog is going mad and barking near his son and he kicks it to get it away from his son, not to cause any injury, damage or unnecessary suffering,” Mr Jones said.

“That’s what he does in the heat of the moment.

“Unfortunately, it appears he did over-react to the situation, for which he apologises.”

In a victim impact statement, Mr Culley explained that he had decided to move away from the area as a result of the incident and felt he could not return to the chip shop.

Besides the fine and compensation, McGill, who has 13 previous convictions for 15 offences including battery, must also pay £85 in court costs and a £40 victim surcharge.